Is It Safe To Breath Inside Your Car?

Most of us think about the quality of the air inside our homes and outside in the environment. But what about the quality of air inside our cars? According to a survey by The Dohring Company, over 95% of the people polled were concerned about the quality of air inside the car. Is it safe to breath the air inside our cars? You might be surprised to learn the answer.

Americans spend an incredible amount of time in their vehicle, an average of 1.5 hours per day. I have a friend who commutes to work two hours a day, five days a week. That is equivalent to a five-day workweek.

Unfortunately, recent and ongoing studies are indicating that the air inside your vehicle is likely more contaminated than that of your home or workplace - up to 2-5 times poorer. After all, the car is just a smaller version and more enclosed space than your house or workplace and is more susceptible to allergies related to fungus and symptoms similar to sick building syndrome. Fungi can enter the air through air streams and the ventilation systems, circulating harmful allergens and microorganisms.

You and the passengers in your car are breathing particles of dust, greenhouse gases and car exhaust - not to mention the formaldehydes, other various irritants in the materials in the car from pets, food and cigarette smoking. According to Anders Lofvendahl, project manager at Volvo, "In hot climates, volatile hydrocarbons evaporate from plastics and textiles." All of these factors can exacerbate asthma and allergies and create a toxic environment for you and your family. And a study done in 1990 by The International Center for Technology Assessment states "…23 separate scientific studies conducted in the 1980's and 1990's reveal that in-car air pollution levels frequently reach concentrations that may threaten human health." In fact, the study goes on to say that the air inside cars contains more carbon monoxide, benzene, toluene, (all carcinogens) fine particle matter, and nitrogen oxides than ambient air at nearby monitoring stations used to calculate government air quality statistics.

Think about it - every car and truck on the road is inhaling and exhaling toxic air - and that air is in your car. That air is what you are inhaling into your lungs and breathing during the time you spend in that enclosed, traveling, contaminated space.

We absolutely adore our dog, Bear. He is a 135-pound Newfoundland and loves to ride in the car. Only problem is, besides the fact that he takes up the entire back seat in our small car, is that he sheds and has a lot of dander with a particular odor. So, rather than leave him at home and pouting, the alternative was to find ways to keep the air in our car healthy and clean. A few suggestions are to plug in an air purifier (in the cigarette lighter plug in - better use for it anyway) that uses negative ions to remove contaminants from the air, air filtration systems for the car, or air freshener ionizers. Keep the windows rolled up and the outside vent closed. Only thing is - Bear won't be able to hang his head out the window!